MEDICATION GUIDE

OXCARBAZEPINE

Tablets

Read this Medication Guide before you start taking oxcarbazepine and each time you get a refill. There may be new information. This information does not take the place of talking to your healthcare provider about your medical condition or treatment.

What is the most important information I should know about oxcarbazepine?

Do not stop taking oxcarbazepine without first talking to your healthcare provider.

Stopping oxcarbazepine suddenly can cause serious problems.

Oxcarbazepine can cause serious side effects, including:

1. Oxcarbazepine may cause the level of sodium in your blood to be low. Symptoms of low blood sodium include:

nausea

tiredness, lack of energy

headache

confusion

more frequent or more severe seizures.

Similar symptoms that are not related to low sodium may occur from taking oxcarbazepine. You should tell your healthcare provider if you have any of these side effects and if they bother you or they do not go away.

Some other medicines can also cause low sodium in your blood. Be sure to tell your healthcare provider about all the other medicines that you are taking.

2. Oxcarbazepine may also cause allergic reactions or serious problems which may affect organs and other parts of your body like the liver or blood cells. You may or may not have a rash with these types of reactions.

Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of the following:

swelling of your face, eyes, lips, or tongue

trouble swallowing or breathing

a skin rash

hives

fever, swollen glands, or sore throat that do not go away or come and go

painful sores in the mouth or around your eyes

yellowing of your skin or eyes

unusual bruising or bleeding

severe fatigue or weakness

severe muscle pain

frequent infections or infections that do not go away

Many people who are allergic to carbamazepine are also allergic to oxcarbazepine. Tell your healthcare provider if you are allergic to carbamazepine.

3. Like otherantiepileptic drugs, oxcarbazepine may cause suicidal thoughts or actions in a verysmall number of people, about 1 in 500.

Call a doctor right away if you have any of these symptoms, especially if they are new, worse, or worry you:

Call your healthcare provider between visits as needed, especially if you are worried about symptoms.

Do not stop taking oxcarbazepine without first talking to a healthcare provider.

Stopping oxcarbazepine suddenly can cause serious problems. Stopping a seizure medicine suddenly in a patient who has epilepsy may cause seizures that will not stop (status epilepticus).

Suicidal thoughts or actions may be caused by things other than medicines. If you have suicidal thoughts or actions, your healthcare provider may check for other causes.

What is Oxcarbazepine?

Oxcarbazepine is a prescription medicine used:

alone or with other medicines to treat partial seizures in adults.

alone to treat partial seizures in children 4 years and older

with other medicines to treat partial seizures in children 2 years and older.

Who should not take oxcarbazepine?

Do not take oxcarbazepine if you are allergic to oxcarbazepine or any of the other ingredients in oxcarbazepine . See the end of this leaflet for a complete list of ingredients in oxcarbazepine .

Many people who are allergic to carbamazepine are also allergic to oxcarbazepine. Tell your healthcare provider if you are allergic to carbamazepine.

What shouldI tell my healthcare provider before taking oxcarbazepine?

Before taking oxcarbazepine, tell your healthcare provider about all your medical conditions, including if you:

have or have had suicidal thoughts or actions, depression or mood problems

have liver problems

have kidney problems

are allergic to carbamazepine. Many people who are allergic to carbamazepine are also allergic to oxcarbazepine.

use birth control medicine. Oxcarbazepine may cause your birth control medicine to be less effective. Talk to your healthcare provider about the best birth control method to use.

are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Oxcarbazepine may harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you become pregnant while taking oxcarbazepine. You and your healthcare provider will decide if you should take oxcarbazepine while you are pregnant.

If you become pregnant while taking oxcarbazepine, talk to your healthcare provider about registering with the North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry. The purpose of this registry is to collect information about the safety of antiepileptic medicine during pregnancy. You can enroll in this registry by calling 1-888-233-2334.

are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. Oxcarbazepine passes into breast milk. You and your healthcare provider should discuss whether you should take oxcarbazepine or breastfeed; you should not do both.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Taking oxcarbazepine with certain other medicines may cause side effects or affect how well they work. Do not start or stop other medicines without talking to your healthcare provider.

Know the medicines you take. Keep a list of them and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist when you get a new medicine.

How should I take oxcarbazepine?

Do not stop taking oxcarbazepine without talking to your healthcare provider. Stopping oxcarbazepine suddenly can cause serious problems, including seizures that will not stop (status epilepticus).

Take oxcarbazepine exactly as prescribed. Your healthcare provider may change your dose. Your healthcare provider will tell you how much oxcarbazepine to take.

Take oxcarbazepine 2 times a day.

Take oxcarbazepine with or without food.

If you take too much oxcarbazepine, call your healthcare provider or local Poison Control Center right away.

What should I avoid while taking oxcarbazepine?

Do not drive, operate heavy machinery, or do other dangerous activities until you know how oxcarbazepine affects you. Oxcarbazepine may slow your thinking and motor skills.

Do not drink alcohol or take other drugs that make you sleepy or dizzy while taking oxcarbazepine until you talk to your healthcare provider. Oxcarbazepine taken with alcohol or drugs that cause sleepiness or dizziness may make your sleepiness or dizziness worse.

What are the possible side effects of oxcarbazepine?

See “What is the most important information I should know about oxcarbazepine?”

Oxcarbazepine may cause other serious side effects including:

your seizures can happen more often or become worse

trouble concentrating

problems with your speech and language

feeling confused

feeling sleepy and tired

trouble walking and with coordination

Get medical help right away if you have any of the symptoms listed above or listed in “What is the most important information I should know about oxcarbazepine?”

The most common side effects of oxcarbazepine include:

dizziness

sleepiness

double vision

tiredness

nausea

vomiting

problems with vision

stomach pain

trembling

upset stomach

problems with walking and coordination (unsteadiness)

rash

infections (especially in children)

These are not all the possible side effects of oxcarbazepine. For more information, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effect that bothers you or does not go away

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Medicines are sometimes prescribed for purposes other than those listed in a Medication Guide. Do not use oxcarbazepine for a condition for which it was not prescribed. Do not give oxcarbazepine to other people, even if they have the same symptoms that you have. It may harm them.

This Medication Guide summarizes the most important information about oxcarbazepine. If you would like more information, talk with your healthcare provider. You can ask your pharmacist or healthcare provider for the full prescribing information about oxcarbazepine that is written for health professionals.